How much cash should you have set aside as you enter the early years of retirement so you can weather market downturns without constant worry? In this episode of Retirement Answers, Jacob Duke explains Rivertree’s bucket strategy: keep two years of portfolio-withdrawal needs in cash (money market) and three years in short-duration fixed income to create a five-year runway, while avoiding being overly conservative and losing purchasing power to inflation. He also walks through how to take withdrawals in practice—generally pulling from what has gone up the most or down the least—and how to proactively replenish cash and bond buckets after strong market periods or following a decline.

👉 Book a call with me: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/get-started

✅ Get your Important Numbers 2026 PDF here: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/2026-important-numbers

Email: jacob@rivertreewealth.com
Website: https://www.rivertreewealth.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobduke

Jacob Duke, CFP, MBA is the founder of Rivertree Wealth and the host of the Retirement Answers podcast.

DISCLAIMER: This should not be taken as tax, legal, or investment advice. All content is for educational purposes only.

00:00 Big Question

00:47 Why Cash Matters

01:35 Bucket One

03:33 Bucket Two

05:37 Avoid Getting Too Conservative

07:42 Allocation Based on Needs

09:38 How to Withdraw in Practice

12:04 Income From Dividends Interest

13:00 Replenishing The Buckets

17:01 Closing

Have you been contributing to a Roth 401(k) for years and assumed that time counts toward the Roth IRA five-year rule when you roll it over?

👉 Book a call with me: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/get-started

✅ Get your Important Numbers 2026 PDF here: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/2026-important-numbers

Email: jacob@rivertreewealth.com
Website: https://www.rivertreewealth.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobduke

Jacob Duke, CFP, MBA is the founder of Rivertree Wealth and the host of the Retirement Answers podcast.

DISCLAIMER: This should not be taken as tax, legal, or investment advice. All content is for educational purposes only.

00:00 Roth 401k vs Roth IRA

01:24 Roth IRA Basics

03:25 Conversions Five Year Rule

05:34 Withdrawal Ordering Rules

07:57 Roth 401k Rollover Myth

10:32 Qualified vs Nonqualified

13:07 Nonqualified Rollover Breakdown

16:34 Qualified Rollover Treatment

22:18 Takeaways

Do you really need to be saving more for retirement? What if it's costing you something you can't get back? Join me in this episode to hear a different perspective on how much you should be saving for retirement.

👉 Book a call with me: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/get-started

✅ Get your Important Numbers 2026 PDF here: https://www.rivertreewealth.com/2026-important-numbers

Email: jacob@rivertreewealth.com
Website: https://www.rivertreewealth.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobduke

Jacob Duke, CFP, MBA is the founder of Rivertree Wealth and the host of the Retirement Answers podcast.

DISCLAIMER: This should not be taken as tax, legal, or investment advice. All content is for educational purposes only.